Israel might be legalising Marihuana soon

It's been a little over a year since Israel's last government passed two now obsolete bills to legalize and decriminalize recreational cannabis. However, the Committee of Ministers on Legislation last weekend voted to press ahead with a bill that would decriminalize the possession of up to 50 grams of cannabis or 15 cannabis seeds for individual recreational use. The law would also change the current system of fines for cannabis use in public. Currently, consumers will be fined NIS 1,000 for the first violation and NIS 2,000 for the second violation before filing a criminal complaint. The new law would lower fines to NIS 500 and eliminate the ability to criminalize the user. If someone is caught possessing more than 50 grams of cannabis in public but can show that it is for personal use, they will be fined NIS 2,000. The law will also allow people to turn to the Israeli Attorney General to retrospectively nullify any criminal record they might have as a result of recreational cannabis use. Plus, it would reclassify CBD as a food additive. The new government sees decriminalization as a necessary first step as it works on legislation to create a framework for a legal recreational cannabis market. The bill goes to the Knesset with the support of the coalition. "The goal of the law is to stop the police from prosecuting cannabis users who do no harm," said the sponsor of the law, New Hope faction leader Sharren Haskel. "This will prevent individual cannabis users from being prosecuted and the issuance of millions of dollars in fines."